CLASSIEST WINERY TOILET: VOYAGER ESTATE?

Working on the fly in the city of Adelaide means I get to use a large number of different toilets, which in turn makes me pay attention to them. I also pay attention to winery toilets.

As soon as I walked into Voyager Estate's I knew I'd walked into something special.

I've seen cellar doors which were no where near this pretty. I mean, have a look at it; marble bench tops, brass fittings, wooden finish and even floral arrangements, it's gorgeous. Total toilet extravagance! I'd almost be happy for Voyager Estate to conduct their tastings in there (with a separate tasting room for the females of course!).

Other winery toilets of note are Balnaves, where they've covered a wall with Gary Larson's fantastic Far Side cartoons, and Ashton Hills, where they tell you to go urinate on a tree outside (and they're damn serious!). In the state of South Australia things are fairly dry. Trees need all the nourishment they can get.

VOYAGER ESTATE RESTAURANT

Voyager Estate's restaurant is housed in a classically elegant, Cape Dutch inspired setting (or so I'm told). To me it has a slight European feel to it, with high wooden ceilings, ornate chandeliers and beautifully decorative wooden seats. There's good natural light to the dining room, but I would've preferred to of seem some larger windows, bringing the outside inside more. I do appreciate winery restaurants which let you know where you are. You can sit in a beautiful room in any inner city restaurant, but you can only sit in a beautiful room surrounded by vineyards, gardens, trees and natural beauty in a winery restaurant in a regional location.

Service at Voyager was superlative from word go. We were served by a variety of young women on the day, all of whom did a very professional, excellent job. Without being overly interfering, they left us alone to enjoy our meals. Their seating arrangements were well thought out too. There were only about 4 or 5 groups dining on this particular day and the waitresses intelligently spread them out across the dining room, which gave everyone the under rated benefit of privacy. It can be quite annoying going for a quiet meal for two and being the only ones in the restaurant, when all of a sudden there is a group of 12 seated right next to you. Voyager steered well clear of this.

Pricing wasn't what you'd call cheap, as entrees started at $14 but mains started at $34, while sides were $9. We were to find out it was all good value though. We ordered creamed potato with black truffle butter as a side. It was magnificent. Its texture was superlative, wonderfully creamy and perfectly consistent, without any inconsistent lumps or hard bits. There was a smattering of truffle flavour gently woven throughout, making for an excellent side to our meals.

The wine list was unsurprisingly Voyager Estate. Except for the flagship Tom Price wines, all wines were available by the glass, with the 2004 Cabernet Merlot being the most expensive at a very modest $15 a glass. There were even wine flights available for people wishing to push that way; one consisting of Voyager's white wines and one reds. I think they were around $15-$20 each.

We began with glasses of the semillon and sauvignon blanc semillon, before moving onto glasses of the chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon merlot.

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DISH 1: BLUE SWIMMER CRAB CROQUETTES WITH GOATS CURD AIOLI

The first dish to come out was the one, and fortunately only disappointment to come out of the Voyager Estate kitchen. Its presentation on a very long plate made you realise just how little food was there. Croquettes aren't the fanciest looking dish either. I'm sure they could improve on appearance here. The real downside though was flavour, or lack there of. There was no sign of crab, either in the croquette or on the palate. It could've just of easily been potato. In its defense it was only $14.

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DISH 2: VENISON CHORIZO, BREADS AND SPREADS

The venison chorizo had me on this one. I love venison (deer for the unawares) and I love chorizo. Apparently venison chorizo is a regional specialty in the Margaret River. At first I was a bit sceptical about the venison/chorizo combination. Normally chorizo is driven by the oily, fatty goodness of the liberal amounts of pork fat which make it such a delight. Venison is a very lean meat, which made it sound like an unusual meat for a chorizo to me. On sight, the leanness and beautiful deep burgundy colour of the venison was readily apparent. The sausage was magnificent. It had ideal chorizo texture, so you had to pull away at the perfectly cooked skin with your teeth. Its flavour was deep, meaty and pronounced, more so than your typical pork fat chorizo, while its fine array of assertive spices carried its flavour into a long, pronounced and lingering finish. My reservations had been proven wrong, seriously wrong. This was exceptional sausage. The breads and spreads were commendable, but real joy came from dipping the bread into the chorizo oil (once the sausages had been eaten) and then into the dukkah. Marvellous!

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DISH 3: POACHED MARRON WITH SAUCE THERMIDORE, PRAWNS WITH PEA AND MINT CRUSH CROSTINI, SALT AND PEPPER SCALLOPS WITH CELERY, APPLE PUREE, WALNUTS

Voyager Estate's Seafood Assiette provided the most satisfying seafood dish we had all trip. The marron was quite nice and fluffy, but it was probably overpowered by the thermidore sauced which accompanied it. The prawns had very nice, genuine flavour, but the lemon in the pea and mint crush crostini was a touch too pronounced. It would've been nice to of tasted more of that crush. The scallops were crusted beautifully with a very gentle coating of salt and pepper, which allowed their delicate flavour to see through. On that note, the scallops did have good flavour, but on the basis of appearance and texture, they appeared undercooked, which might have been why their true seafood flavour came through. Personally I'd heard the Margaret River had some exquisite seafood, which we went and sought out. This was the seafood higlight of our trip to the Margaret River. Although it was a good dish ($43), it wasn't exceptional.

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DISH 4: TENDERIDGE EYE FILLET, CHARGRILLED WITH PARSNIP AND POTATO DAUPHINOISE, SPINACH PUREE, ROASTED MUSHROOMS AND BLACK TRUFFLE BUTTER

The promise of black truffle butter forced me to order the steak. I'm a bit of a truffle freak. Whenever I see it appear on a menu, I can't help but order whatever it is. The truffle in this dish was fairly underpronounced though, yet it was apparent. The spinach puree, roasted mushrooms and potato dauphinoise all met the expectations of a $40 plate (I particularly liked the cubed presentation of the dauphinoise), but the focal point was where it should be; the steak. I've never had tenderidge eye fillet before, but if I ever get the chance again, I'll definitely head straight for it. Its texture was amazing, you could just chomp straight through it. It was meaty, deeply flavoured and tasted like steak should, with only a hint of truffle evident in every bite. It was neither too juicy or tender and the jus matched every bit as well as Voyager Estate's 2004 Cabernet Merlot did. An exemplary steak.

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DISH 5: APPLE FRITTERS WITH HONEY PANNA COTTA WITH PISTACHIO GLAZE AND BISCUIT

This was an outstanding dessert. There were two huge highlights here, depending on your tastes. The panna cotta was exceptional, truly delicious. It was beautifully, delicately flavoured with a light honey and its texture was spot on. But for me, the apple fritter side stole the show. Imagine a hot cinnamon donut with a ring of freshly baked apple inside. Now that's what I call scrumptious. Overall, this really was my kind of dessert. Good variation of flavours and textures, light and sweet yet not too intense. Top marks to Voyager's chefs for this one.

VOYAGER ESTATE RESTAURANT

- THE BOTOM LINE -

Voyager Estate puts on a superb dining experience. There were a couple of very memorable culinary standouts; the venison chorizo, the tenderidge eye fillet and the dessert. Service was exquisite throughout the meal, perfect even. My only concern with the restaurant, and this is a minor one, is the decor. Some people will really go for the interior design, but I found it a bit too busy, with the tables and chairs perhaps pushed in too close to each other. It was fairly quiet on the day we dined, but if it was busy I could see Voyager having a relatively hectic ambience. In summary Voyager is a wonderful winery restaurant. Even though the mains revolve around $40, the quality of the food more than justifies it. So if it's a fine dining experience in the Margaret River you're after with exceptional food and service, then you need look no further than Voyager Estate.

I give it 8.5/10

HOWARD PARK CHARDONNAY 2007

 - Great Southern, WA

 - $31-$44

 - Screwcap

 - 13.5%alc

Howard Park's made great strides with white wine lately. To complement Western Australia's most iconic riesling, they also produce one of Great Southern's finest chardonnays and an emerging sauvignon blanc of some class.

Fresh and fragrant, Howard Park's 2007 Chardonnay opens to a fine interplay of sweet, nutty vanilla oak and ripe fruit aromas, with white peach, melon and citrus at the fore. Although a fraction broad and forward, its fuller palate delivers an even measure of mineral/lemon citrus and bready barrel ferment notes along a pleasantly creamy texture. It finishes a little loose without exceptional tightness, but should remain a fine drink over the shorter term.

ü With better shape, acid definition, length and focus; this generously proportioned, more savoury chardonnay would've been a classic. Drink to 2013.

91 points

www.howardparkwines.com.au

HOWARD PARK

One of my motives for visiting Howard Park was to taste Western Australian wines from regions other than the Margaret River. It's well known that Howard Park produces fine wine from the Great Southern region, but they also spread their wings to less famous south-Western Australian regions such as Pemberton, Geographe and the little known Harvey.

The range at Howard Park is large and diverse, probably the largest I encountered in the region. Other than their flagship Howard Park range, they also release more affordable products under the MadFish label. Interestingly, they now make reserve level MadFish wines under a new Gold Turtle label. I haven't seen the Gold Turtle range in Adelaide yet, but some of the wines look promising. I like the clean and simple labeling of these new wines, as well as their provoking variety/regional combinations. I also applaud the lack of direct competition with Howard Park.

OH MAN! IT'S A MAN!

When I first walked into Howard Park's modern, spacious, or perhaps even cold and neutral cellar door, I noticed something was different:- it was staffed by a man! This was the first and inevitably the only male cellar door hand I encountered in the Margaret River. To be frank, I actually felt a sense of relief.

I was so enthused by this revelation I immediately approached him and introduced ourselves, while congratulating him on his fine achievement. Turns out his name was Jamie. Now what was even more surprising, was he was easily the best cellar door hand in the Margaret River. Which made me wonder why there weren't more like him around. I'm not sounding sexist, am I?

Jamie possessed six attributes which I think made him great. There were no other Margaret River cellar door hands I met whom I considered possessed these attributes. These basic attributes are:-

1. Passionate about wine

2. Passionate about learning more about wine

3. Loves people

4. Loves meeting new people

5. Honest to the customer

6. Ability to improvise

There was no question Jamie was passionate about wine, but I really appreciate someone who is passionate about learning about wine from wherever they can. Many cellar door hands hold the impression they educate the customer and that's it, but really, it's a two way street. Every single person who walks into the tasting room is an educational opportunity for a cellar door hand, and the good ones are aware of this. Even the most novice of wine drinkers is a chance to gain knowledge. The novice tourist may not be able to provide information on the great wine estates of Burgundy, but they can certainly provide information on consumer tastes, opinions, trends, stories and so much more. This feedback is vital. Too many cellar door hands ignore this fact, believing they and only they are capable of intellectual wine conversation, and the customer's role is to listen, not speak.

Jamie talked with us for nearly an hour, slowly, across their entire range. It was downright obvious he listened carefully to everything I said and even though it perplexed Beck a bit, I loved that he asked her direct opinion on every single wine she tasted. Brilliant Jamie, brilliant.

Honesty was also a fine attribute of Jamie's. As we drank and discussed, he gave us his honest opinions of all their wines. That's right, he even told us which wines he doesn't like! Not much frustrates me more than going to a cellar door with a large number of wines and being told by the host how great every single wine is. "I like this one, now this one's my favourite, I really like this one, I drink this one all the time etc. etc. etc." This kind of attitude tends to make me tune out a bit on a cellar door hand's opinions, but as soon as one tells me they don't like a wine, that's when I start to think they're being honest with me, and really listen to them (this isn't to say there aren't wineries out there who produce brilliant wines across their range).

Something I've just come up with is Jamie's ability to improvise. Howard Park charge a $5 tasting fee for any Howard Park wines, only the MadFish range is free of charge. We had a brief introduction and discussion about wine as soon as we arrived, then proceeded onto the first MadFish wine (the riesling). After the first tasting Jamie questioned us on our opinions of the wine. I responded with a typical Australian Wine Journal-esque comment, to which Jamie listened carefully. Immediately, he offered to pour the Howard Park Riesling. That's how the rest of the tasting proceeded. Jamie quickly picked up I was no young punk looking to get pissed for free (some cellar door hands never realise this) and reacted accordingly. He ended up pouring us the entire Howard Park range, including the newly named flagship Abercrombie. At no point did he ask us for money. Personally I felt he saw it as a good opportunity to get a more detailed opinion of the Howard Park wines.

Bravo Jamie, bravo. If I presented an award for best cellar door hand in the Margaret River, you'd get it by as big a margin as Brisbane's Daniel Rich just won the NAB Rising Star Award.

THE WINES

The Howard Park whites were the real highlights here again. The 2008 Riesling in particular is looking quite spectacular, seemingly even better than when I reviewed an entire bottle at release.

Howard Park's reds however, disappointed me once again. I can't remember having a Howard Park red I really liked since the 2004 Leston Cabernet Sauvignon to be honest. At $40 cellar door I'm concerned their prices might've gone up. I recall paying $28 at Man Durphys for those 2004 Lestons. I do like how Howard Park only released one of the reds from the very cool, poor 2006 vintage (the Leston Cabernet), but the 2005's weren't much hat anyway.

The MadFish range had some good surprises. The pinot noir and carnelian (my first encounter with this variety) were real successes for under $20, while the Margaret River sourced Gold Turtle Chardonnay might've been even better than the Howard Park Chardonnay.

MadFish Riesling 2007 ($17)

Great Southern fruit. Fast developing, more savoury riesling with a dry, schisty and austere palate. 87

Howard Park Riesling 2008 ($25)

Outstanding purity of fruit character coupled with superb structure, acids and length. This was even better than I remembered. A real purists riesling, but even my girlfriend who doesn't fully appreciate the style loved this. 94

Howard Park Sauvignon Blanc 2008 ($25)

Wood fermented Margaret River/Pemberton fruit. The wood is just starting to overlap its fruit now, but it still remains a most enticing savvy with an emerging savoury flavour profile and smooth texture. 92

MadFish Gold Turtle Chardonnay 2007 ($24)

Margaret River. Good aromatic lift to its melon, stonefruit and vanilla oak notes. The palate has very good length of pungently flavoured chardonnay fruits. A long and generous chardonnay with surprising refinement. This could challenge the Howard Park in coming years. 93

Howard Park Chardonnay 2007 ($38)

Very generously proportioned, savoury chardonnay with a fine marriage of tightly wound mineral lemon citrus notes and bready barrel ferment notes. Creamy texture. (reviewed separate post) 91

MadFish Pinot Noir 2008 ($19)

Pemberton. Sweet cherry and raspberry nose with hints of stalk evident. True varietal fragrance. Fairly light palate but does have reasonable depth of flavour and some earthy undertones. A rare, pleasant early drinking Western Australian pinot noir. Priced correctly. 88

MadFish Carnelian 2007 ($19)

A hybrid variety of cabernet sauvignon, carignan and grenache. Jamie told me he really didn't like this but I still approached it with open arms. Slightly sweet, confection like red berry fruit characters with some soft vanilla accents. Palate is medium-bodied with good, silky concentration on entry, before a wave of very strong, firm tannins takes over the wine, dominating the finish. The tannins seem a little detached, but I have a feeling they'll sort themselves out in the next 6-12 months. I found this quite enchanting, and now deeply regret I didn't buy any at that price, as finding some in SA could take some work. 89

MadFish Gold Turtle Tempranillo 2008 ($28)

Lightly perfumed, cherry fruit and licorice/aniseed nose. Palate does lack true depth, revealing strong all-spice characters. 87

Howard Park Scotsdale Shiraz 2005 ($40)

Quite ripe and meaty, with cooked fruit evident. Palate doesn't meld well, lacking length, impact and sensuous enjoyment. 85

Howard Park Leston Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 ($40)

Some minty tones to red/dark fruits and vanilla oak. Quite a distinctive, well defined palate for this vintage, but it doesn't show true penetration or harmony. 88

Howard Park Abercrombie Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 ($85)

Once again berry fruits and vanilla oak on the nose, with obvious eucalypt notes. Good concentration to the palate, with a pleasing savoury undercarriage, but it does seem to have a slightly disjointed tannic lift, without the sensual ripeness of the best '05s. 90

BROOKLAND VALLEY

The Constellation outpost in the Margaret River sure is set on some beautiful grounds. The whole area is surrounded by a mini-forest, with nature walk, footbridge and a pretty creek which runs right along the side of the tasting room.

The most noticeable aspect of the tasting room was the significant amount of glassware available to purchase. There is literally thousands of dollars worth of glassware set up on flimsy shelves along one wall of the Brookland Valley cellar door. It seemed to me if a busloads of drunks rocked up with one particular, stumbling paro, they could be in for some trouble. Obviously it hasn't happened yet as the glassware is still there.

We were served by a young woman on the day, who was recommended to us by another cellar door hand. She was very well versed in her Brookland Valley range, but it was apparent her heart wasn't in it on this day. Her mood seemed a bit down and her charisma was lacking, not to mention she kept staring off into the distance while talking to us.

It surprised me to hear she believed being named James Halliday's Winery of the Year had little effect on their popularity. From what I've seen Brookland Valley's marketing team has certainly tried to drive home this fact, as numerous of their bottles now state it on their neck. I don't remember Balnaves doing that. Also, on their website, the words 'James Halliday's Winery of the Year' appear an amazing 5 times on the opening page alone. If what she said is true, then maybe the assertive Halliday inspired marketing strategy had gone to waste. She also told me working for Constellation is fantastic.

THE WINES

Surprisingly, all the Verse 1 wines, which I regularly enjoy, disappointed me. This range compromised of a 2008 Sauvignon Blanc Semillon and 2007 Chardonnay, as well as 2007 releases of Shiraz and Cabernet Merlot. All these wines were fair and offered reasonable but not exceptional value. The chardonnay was probably the pick of the bunch. The sav blanc/sem was nice but uninspiring, whilst the two reds both seemed a little thin and green. I definitely didn't like the 2008 rose, which had suspiciously dirty, sweet edges.

Here are tasting notes for the better, but unfortunately more expensive wines. For some reason I seem to of not taken notes for the 2006 Semillon. Mustn't have been too memorable.

Brookland Valley Chardonnay 2008 ($40)

Personally I was hoping the 2008 Verse 1 Chardonnay, which I've seen in stores, would be available for tasting. No such luck though. Fortunately they had this very tasty, fruit forward Margaret River styled chardonnay with any indication of its oak treatment sitting happily in the background. It's very clean, fresh and youthful, making it a delight to drink. 92

Brookland Valley Merlot 2002 ($38)

Developed, savoury and earthy characters. Even, settled palate, but it lacks excitement and life, whilst looking a little tired. 87

Brookland Valley Cabernet Merlot 2004 ($40)

Another fantastic Margaret River cabernet from this vintage. Black fruit, licorice, toasty cedar oak, light spice and faint herbal aromas show good intensity and lift. Elegant, truly regional palate with seamless balance, evenly ripened dark fruit flavours and a savoury finish framed by dusty tannins and emerging cedar oak. 93

Brookland Valley Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 ($70)

Admittedly it was very nice of Emma to crack this for us, which isn't actually on the tasting list. It contains a deep nose with some developing barnyard characters evident. Its similarly mature palate reveals smooth texture and good polish, with ample drive and length. Very good but aging quickly for this price point, which probably makes it appear nicer now. 92